Dear Journal, My road has been a long one. I am fighting for antiwar efforts. I wanted to meet with the President and have a face to face conversation with him about why war is wrong. When I got this chance I said everything in a positive tone but he did not take my adivce. Some people may think I'm crazy but I have good reasons. I know from experience how awful and deadly war is. My son Casey Sheehan died in battle on April 4, 2004 in Iraq. This was just the beginning of my downfall. After my son's death my husband filed for divorce on August 12, 2005, citing "irreconcilable differences." The center of our arguments were the different view points on war. I believe that nothing can be achieved from war. He did not support my belief that we should fight to stop war, the very war that killed our son. He may not agree with my views on war but it doesn't change my mind that this war must end. I'm going to keep trying and I will never give up until the war is over. Sincerely, Cindy Sheehan.
Dear Journal, The year 2005 was when my efforts started to pick up. I camped out in a ditch three miles away from President George Bush's Prairie Chapel Ranch. My intentions for camping out was to get that face to face meeting with the President that I wanted. The media called my actions "Camp Casey" because a bunch of supporters came to protest with me and 1500 people visited. Some of these people were even U.S Congress members, actors, singers, and civil rights activists. The only time I left my tent was when I went back to California to see my mom would had a stroke. I am also the founding member of the Gold Star Families for Peace and we broadcasted a TV commerical telling people that war needs to end and war needs to end now. We also marched to a police station outside of Bush's ranch and gave them a bundle of oversized letters written to the First Lady, Laura Bush. These letters were written to her not as our First Lady, but as a mother. I have many other supporters beside my organization. Also in 2005, we held a "Bring Them Home Now Tour" in which my organization, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Military Speak Out, and Veterans For Peace were all apart of. Sincerely, Cindy Sheehan
Dear Journal, On January 31, 2006 I was arrested because I wore a T-shirt to Bush's "State of the Union" address that read "2,245 Dead. How Many More?" This was not the last time I would be arrested in this year alone. I also made many speeches, including one on Mother's Day at which I told the mothers that without my son this day is very emotional. Why should any more parents go through this? Justice for my son's death is my main motivation and that is the message I tried to get in the minds of these mothers as well as everyone else in America. On July 5 of this year I appeared on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews and discussed my points on the war and I even went as far as calling Bush "the biggest terrorist in the world." I didn't care what the government or anyone else thought. He started a war that killed my son and I wanted everyone watching to know how I felt. I also appeared on The Stephanie Miller Show and released a memoir entitlted Peace Mom: A Mother's Journey Through Heartache to Activism.
Dear Journal, After the negative response I got from my meeting with President Bush I started supporting the Left-Wing. This all changed when President Obama became President and did not keep any of his promises. He told us Americans that the first thing he would do was get our troops out of war. Well he has been in office for over 2 years and our troops are still there. This has left me no choice but to support the Radical Muslim groups, despite their also Anti-American efforts, and the White Supremacists/Nazi groups. This may seem crazy but they share my views so I will work with them. No matter what though I choose to passively protest because otherwise I would be going against what I am fighting for. Basically, my methods of protesting are just keeping going until you reach your goal. Sincerely, Cindy Sheehan
Dear Journal, People often ask me if I am ever afraid of the consequences of my actions. I am aware that what I do is risky and government officals do have the authority to arrest me. However in my mind I think, "if that is the worst punishment why should I be afraid?", my son already got the worse consequence that there is. I always tell myself that there are positive outcomes to what I do. We could make a difference and stop war. If we stop war then we stop the pointless deaths of the men and women overseas. If we stop their deaths then we stop the hurt it causes their families. I see only positives to stopping war and we could create a huge chain reaction. The negatives outcomes are my being arrested or someone could possible get hurt if a protest ever broke out into a riot. I believe that the outcome out weighs the possible road bumps along the way. I also believe that each experience I have had in my protests has been beneficial and will help me reach my goal. I have not accomplished my goal yet but if/when I do it would have all been worth with. I just wish I could get to my goal with my son by my side. Sincerely, Cindy Sheehan
Dear Journal,
My road has been a long one. I am fighting for antiwar efforts. I wanted to meet with the President and have a face to face conversation with him about why war is wrong. When I got this chance I said everything in a positive tone but he did not take my adivce. Some people may think I'm crazy but I have good reasons. I know from experience how awful and deadly war is. My son Casey Sheehan died in battle on April 4, 2004 in Iraq. This was just the beginning of my downfall. After my son's death my husband filed for divorce on August 12, 2005, citing "irreconcilable differences." The center of our arguments were the different view points on war. I believe that nothing can be achieved from war. He did not support my belief that we should fight to stop war, the very war that killed our son. He may not agree with my views on war but it doesn't change my mind that this war must end. I'm going to keep trying and I will never give up until the war is over.
Sincerely,
Cindy Sheehan.
Dear Journal,
The year 2005 was when my efforts started to pick up. I camped out in a ditch three miles away from President George Bush's Prairie Chapel Ranch. My intentions for camping out was to get that face to face meeting with the President that I wanted. The media called my actions "Camp Casey" because a bunch of supporters came to protest with me and 1500 people visited. Some of these people were even U.S Congress members, actors, singers, and civil rights activists. The only time I left my tent was when I went back to California to see my mom would had a stroke. I am also the founding member of the Gold Star Families for Peace and we broadcasted a TV commerical telling people that war needs to end and war needs to end now. We also marched to a police station outside of Bush's ranch and gave them a bundle of oversized letters written to the First Lady, Laura Bush. These letters were written to her not as our First Lady, but as a mother. I have many other supporters beside my organization. Also in 2005, we held a "Bring Them Home Now Tour" in which my organization, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Military Speak Out, and Veterans For Peace were all apart of.
Sincerely,
Cindy Sheehan
Dear Journal,
On January 31, 2006 I was arrested because I wore a T-shirt to Bush's "State of the Union" address that read "2,245 Dead. How Many More?" This was not the last time I would be arrested in this year alone. I also made many speeches, including one on Mother's Day at which I told the mothers that without my son this day is very emotional. Why should any more parents go through this? Justice for my son's death is my main motivation and that is the message I tried to get in the minds of these mothers as well as everyone else in America. On July 5 of this year I appeared on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews and discussed my points on the war and I even went as far as calling Bush "the biggest terrorist in the world." I didn't care what the government or anyone else thought. He started a war that killed my son and I wanted everyone watching to know how I felt. I also appeared on The Stephanie Miller Show and released a memoir entitlted Peace Mom: A Mother's Journey Through Heartache to Activism.
Dear Journal,
After the negative response I got from my meeting with President Bush I started supporting the Left-Wing. This all changed when President Obama became President and did not keep any of his promises. He told us Americans that the first thing he would do was get our troops out of war. Well he has been in office for over 2 years and our troops are still there. This has left me no choice but to support the Radical Muslim groups, despite their also Anti-American efforts, and the White Supremacists/Nazi groups. This may seem crazy but they share my views so I will work with them. No matter what though I choose to passively protest because otherwise I would be going against what I am fighting for. Basically, my methods of protesting are just keeping going until you reach your goal.
Sincerely,
Cindy Sheehan
Dear Journal,
People often ask me if I am ever afraid of the consequences of my actions. I am aware that what I do is risky and government officals do have the authority to arrest me. However in my mind I think, "if that is the worst punishment why should I be afraid?", my son already got the worse consequence that there is. I always tell myself that there are positive outcomes to what I do. We could make a difference and stop war. If we stop war then we stop the pointless deaths of the men and women overseas. If we stop their deaths then we stop the hurt it causes their families. I see only positives to stopping war and we could create a huge chain reaction. The negatives outcomes are my being arrested or someone could possible get hurt if a protest ever broke out into a riot. I believe that the outcome out weighs the possible road bumps along the way. I also believe that each experience I have had in my protests has been beneficial and will help me reach my goal. I have not accomplished my goal yet but if/when I do it would have all been worth with. I just wish I could get to my goal with my son by my side.
Sincerely,
Cindy Sheehan